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he adds: “I'm always inspired by art, by paintings”. This dark palette punctuated by bright touches is reminiscent of certain paintings by Zao Wou-Ki, whose work on light and the vibration of colours the ceramist admires. When it comes to shapes, Berangère is very inspired by the work of Serge Poliakoff. In terms of design, she claims an aesthetic affiliation with Ettore Sottsass and the Memphis movement, which in the 1980s overturned the codes of furniture and decoration with its geometric shapes, bright colours and quirky humour. This boldness, this taste for rupture, has encouraged her to go beyond the simple functionality of her pieces to turn them into modular objects, where form can be broken down and recomposed ad infinitum. “ I've always loved fitting pieces together,” reveals the ceramist. “I feel that's been my style from the start, even if it was smaller to begin with. When I make my pieces, I always think about design and construction. In fact, I see my pieces as houses, where the openings are the windows, very much inspired by Pierre Cardin's houses in Théoule”.

An artist first and foremost, she also takes on commissions from restaurants, with pieces designed for the table and the home. "I make chopstick holders and pots for tofu at Mr Xiao's and I designed hand-painted plates and dishes for Amis, the restaurant my son Jules is opening in Madrid. I also designed a washbasin and stools for the first time. I never do the same thing again. I love the surprise, the discovery when you open the oven. In the end,” she adds dreamily, “you never know how the pieces are going to come out. “ A year after moving to Palma, Bérangère is opening her space to Marion de Raucourt. An established ceramist, the young woman creates vases, plates, sculptures in the shape of a face or a horse, dancing figures, sometimes grotesque, often inspired by carnival. “It's stimulating,‘ explains Bérangère, “to exchange ideas, not to be alone, to see what others are doing”. A creative nest, the studio is open to other artists who work in complete freedom, while also hosting courses where Berangère advises and helps beginner ceramists to get to grips with their craft and find their way. At Bérangère's workshop, they make pieces using columns or slabs, because she doesn't like working on the wheel. Plates, vases and sculptures are enamelled in dozens of colours, engobes are painted, enamels are poured and matt and shiny colours are mixed. You go in to shape a plate, and come out wanting to start all over again. Because ceramics here is a school of freedom.

Berangère Barbaud, Calle d’Heredero 27, Palma,

@berangèrebarbaud

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